the Apidse in the British Museum. 93 



Besides notes on species already known, nine species are 

 described as new, of which the most interesting are the two 

 new Epeolus from Abyssinia. 



All the types are in the British Museum. 



Crocisa, Panz. 



The species of Crocisa from the Oriental-Australian region 

 are partly dealt with by Friese (Zeitschr. Hym. Dipt. pp. 1— 

 12, 1905"). Later, the Australian species are tabulated by 

 Cockerell (Entom. News, vol. xviii. p. 46, 1907; and Bull. 

 Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist, xxiii. pp. 232-33). 



Crocisa bidentata, W. F. Kirby, represented by two male 

 specimens, is a very striking species from the Hari-rud 

 Valley, Afghanistan. In the type the second transverso- 

 cubital nervure is only rudimentary in both wings, but in the 

 other specimen the venation is normal. The abdomen is 

 entirely black, and there does not appear to have been any 

 change in coloration through the agency of spirit, in which 

 the specimens were evidently preserved after capture. The 

 anterior wings are very darkly infuscate, and the pygidium 

 is bituberculate, with a longitudinal keel. 



It is curious that another species of Crocisa described 

 by Kirby from Sokotra (Crocisa uniformis, W. F. Kirby) 

 should have also been a black species. Kohl considers it to 

 be nearly allied to C. ramosa, Lep. ; it certainly may prove 

 to be a geographical race of that species. 



Crocisa picta, Smith. 



Crocim jiicta, Smith, Catal. Hymen. Brit. Mus. ii. p. 277 (1864). 2- 

 Crocisa guineensis, Rad. Bull, Soc. Natural. Moscou, p. 172 (1893J. o*. 



Vachal described the female of C. guineensis (Ann. Soc. 

 Ent. France, p. 379, 1903). In C. picta there is a lougitu- 

 dinal carina along the whole length of sternite 5, not only at 

 the apex, as Friese states (' Die Bienen Afrikas/ p. 302). 



Mesonychium, Lep. et Serv. 



Ducke has recently (Zoolog. Jahrb. p. 106, 1912) syno- 

 nymised Melissa, Smith, with this genus. The species of 

 Mesonychium fall into two natural groups, into the second 

 of which, the Mesoplia group, fall all the species described 

 by Smith as Melissa with the exception of M. asteria. This 

 species, which is synonymous with M. maculata, Vi\, belongs 

 to Mesoiii/cftium, s. str. 



